


Colours

by Moonwanderer



Series: Avengers one-shots and drabbles [9]
Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Friendship, Gen, Hurt Tony, Injury, Symbolism, Team Dynamics
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-28
Updated: 2019-01-28
Packaged: 2019-10-18 11:44:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 813
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17580191
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Moonwanderer/pseuds/Moonwanderer
Summary: Tony is trying his best not to die from an internal bleeding. Sometimes all it takes is a near-death experience to see clear.





	Colours

**Author's Note:**

> After two agonizing months of writers' block, the Muses kissed my forehead.
> 
> I am not a native speaker, so mistakes may be found.  
> I do not own the characters, etc., etc.,...

Okay, Bruce _might_ have been right, he shouldn’t have neglected this injury. But he was used to being hurt during missions, why would this one be any different?

  
Because now he is lying on his back on the hard floor of a jet, with Thor’s red cape as the only attempt for comfort, slowly bleeding out. On the inside.

  
Tony blinks, and turns his head sideways so he could watch the others instead of the dark ceiling. Something is wrong with his vision, he notices, but even more blinking cannot clear his eyes.

  
His other senses are also off a bit. He can feel the soft, rich fabric of the cape under his fingers, but not the rocking force of their flight. He can hear the blood rushing in his ears but not a word from Nat, though her lips are moving. Ozone fills his nose with every inhale- Thor’s scent- but the air lacks the metallic smell of the jet’s interior. The bitter taste of the painkiller Bruce gave him a few minutes ago still lingers on his lips, without the salty aftertaste, though he knows there’s blood on his tongue.

  
It’s too late to realise, but now he knows he fucked up pretty bad this time.

  
He slips in and out of consciousness, figthing so hard against the dreams- he knows if he falls asleep there is no way back up.

  
His teammates are all there, busy with him and each other- important stuff, he guesses now that he can’t hear them well- and can’t help but wonder who drives the jet.

  
None of the ideas of his brilliant mind seem to help him against the magnetic force of darkness, so he grabs at the only thing he could use instead. Through the feverish haze of his vision, he anchors himself to his friends.

  
Nat is the first one he could catch, because she is small and swift. Her body blends into the darkness, but not her flaming hair. She is _red_ , a vibrant, lively colour no one can ignore. Red is the essence of life, he knows, like blood,- it’s the birth and the end, it marks danger and love. Natasha is red, like every woman, she is the life. It’s a great start, easy to locate and helps him focus.

  
The next one he notices is Bruce. The scientist is beside him and for a moment Tony can almost _feel_ him as a whole –the warmth his body radiates, the lingering scent of something unique only his skin has, the weight of his palm on his forehead, the urging tone of his voice. Then it slips out of his reach and only the _green_ light of his irises remains. Their gazes meet and green is a good colour, calming down his shallow gasps for air into a slower rhythym.

  
Now more air reaches his body and his vision clears- not much but enough for him to see Thor in the fog. (How come there is fog in the jet?) It’s funny, cause Thor also should be red, but now Tony can see him the first time for real, and he is _blue_. It suits him, Tony decides. Thor is like the sky- never the same but eternal, too far to reach but always there. He is above them but still a part of their world, and this thought gives him hope to carry on.

  
Clint is _silver_ and somehow it makes sense. It’s not a surprise, even if Tony knows in other days he would have guessed purple instead. But Clint is silver, it’s shimmering on his skin, from his eyes. He cannot lose focus, though he is tired, very tired, cause Clint doesn’t let him wander away. He shines with an alien beauty, and as he leans over him and grabs hold of his hand, the contact penetrates his mind. Clint is a silver arrow, showing him the way.

  
Tony lost his other senses long ago, but his vision is working, it has to work if he wants to survive, and now that he knows the way, it’s easy to find Cap. Any other would see him blue, but not him, no. For Tony, and maybe for him only, Steve has always been _gold_. As he is gold now, and for a moment only he is more- white skin, sapphire eyes, and lips red- the man behind the golden glow of freedom his heart has always been aching for.

  
And Tony knows if he gives up now, he will lose it forever, his heart, his freedom, and that... that he will never let happen.

  
So he keeps focusing on the golden glow, while life is surging through his veins red, mind calm green, with blue hope in his heart, and silver helping him stay on the right path.

  
This way, and maybe this way only, he will survive.

**Author's Note:**

> Please, feel free to leave a comment!  
> Negative comments or comments of displeasure are also welcome, you can help me improve by pointing out my mistakes.


End file.
